Khorasan Group leader killed in strike, US says

The “highest-ranking leader” of the Al Qaeda-affiliated Khorasan Group was killed during a coalition airstrike, the Department of Defense announced in a news release Sunday afternoon.

Abdul Mohsen Adballah Ibrahim al Charekh, a Saudi national also known as Sanafi al-Nasr, was killed during an Oct. 15 strike.

“The United States will not relent in its mission to degrade, disrupt and destroy Al Qaeda and its remnants,” Defense Secretary Ash Carter said in a statement on Sunday. “This operation deals a significant blow to the Khorasan Group’s plans to attack the United States and our allies, and once again proves that those who seek to do us harm are not beyond our reach.”

The fifth senior Khorasan Group leader killed in the past four months, al-Nasr is described in the statement as a “long-time jihadist experienced in funneling money and fighters for Al Qaeda.” Officials say he moved funds from donors in the Gulf into the hands of terrorist leaders across the Middle East, organized new recruits and helped with operations in the West.